This invention relates to a novel belt buckle construction which enables the buckle to function in its normal intended fashion and also to function as a clip. It is primarily intended for use in cooperation with a trouser belt, although the novel principles of the invention may be usable in any buckle application wherein it is desirable to have a clamping means associated with the buckle.
For a considerable number of years the construction of belt buckles has been standardized along several design options. In one form of design option the buckle consists of a closed loop metal frame, usually rectangular in shape, with a pivotal belt fastener attached around one leg. One end of a belt is attached, more or less permanently, around the same leg, and the other end of the belt has a number of spaced belt holes or perforations so that the belt length may be selectively adjusted and the belt fastener may be inserted through one of the perforations to hold the belt length at the selected distance. The belt fastener is made slightly longer than the metal loop width so that it is prevented from complete rotational freedom by contacting the opposite leg of the buckle frame.
A second fairly standardized form of belt buckle comprises a metal frame, usually rectangular in shape, having an intermediate center crossbar around which the belt fastener is pivotally attached. The length of the belt fastener is made slightly longer than the distance to an opposite buckle leg to prevent rotational freedom, and one end of the belt is fastened, more or less permanently, to the center crossbar member. In this belt buckle embodiment the fastener is attached in the conventional way, although the loop end of the belt is fed beneath the two buckle outside legs and above the center bar.
Any number of stylistic design approaches may be used with the two foregoing buckle constructions to provide an endless variety of buckle designs. The present invention relates primarily to the second buckle construction described above, and although only a single stylistic design is shown herein, it should be understood that the structural features of the invention are operable with an infinite variety of stylistic designs.